Here's How Nicole W. Gets Through a Workout!

Hey, readers! Hope everything has been going well for you guys. Things have been kind of bumpy for me. Fortunately, I've yet to miss a day of heading to the gym. There's one thing, though, that happens every time I work out. About halfway through, 10 minutes or so after I break a sweat and start to feel the burn, a voice in the back of my mind starts to try to talk me out of finishing. It says things like, "You're tired. It won't matter if you don't finish the last 15 minutes," or "You can't finish." I know we all have experienced this at one time or another. But, I've come up with a few strategies to push through and finish my workout.

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1. I stop looking at the clock. While I was working out at 24 Hour Fitness, I noticed that a lot of people used their towels to cover the timers on each of the exercise machines. So, I gave it a try. I noticed that when I'm not focusing on the clock, time seems to pass a lot quicker.

2. I get lost in my own mind. (Kind of like you do when you're about to fall asleep!) I'll start to listen to lyrics of a song and try to interpret them in different ways, relate the songs to my life, or the lives of my friends. Eventually, my train of thought will have helped me pass the time.

3. When I can't resist looking at the clock, I make sure I'm doing a countdown rather than a "count-up." Instead of seeing that I've completed 10, 15, 20 minutes, I change the setting so that it shows how much time I have left. Somehow, this makes it seem like I'm working out for a smaller amount of time.

4. I think about how accomplished I'll feel when I'm finished. (The endorphins the body releases don't hurt either.) No matter what mood I'm in when I get to the gym, I always leave feeling proud of myself for a job well done, and in a better mood. I've noticed working out helps me to relieve stress and tension, so I keep that in mind when I feel like quitting.